Tim Wise on the Tangible Effects of Subtle Racism

Most—if not all—courts would deem the racial effects that Tim Wise describes as being too attenuated.  But they are the very effects that constitute the modern racism we tolerate. 

There are other ignored linkages.  The other day, a friend of mine, who is African-American, told me that upon dropping her daughter off at school, a white administrator told the daughter that her hair is “just like a doll’s hair.”  It would be as much of a stretch for me to conclude that this administrator said this with any racial animus, as it was for Tim to conclude that the officer was engaged in racial profiling in the situation he describes.  Still the mother called her husband from her car to discuss the indignity and, so distracted, was pulled over for running a red light.

Whether there was racial intent behind the administrator’s comment or not, merely having to consider this question led to a distracted driving scenario in which the mother was pulled over.  Thankfully, the officer did not issue a ticket.  But these isolated incidents highlight the same pathology that leads to the health effects Tim Wise illustrates (health outcomes), legal grey areas (disproportionate incarceration rates), children of color being subjected to discipline in school more often than white children (achievement gaps), and any number of other disparities.